


To Bleed Away

by dunk_on_em (the_author_at_221B)



Category: Venom (Movie 2018)
Genre: Angst, Angst and Hurt/Comfort, Angst with a Happy Ending, Hurt/Comfort, M/M, Pain, Sacrifice, Starvation, i have returned to write the angst fic you cowards won't!
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-11-03
Updated: 2018-11-11
Packaged: 2019-08-17 06:02:53
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 3
Words: 4,580
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16510715
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/the_author_at_221B/pseuds/dunk_on_em
Summary: The man straightened up, and turned to walk out of the room.“Tell your friend there’s no food coming. Tell your friend the only food that will be provided is already in the cage with them.”Eddie stood up. “You sick fuck, I swear to God, I’ll -”“If your friend wants to live, they’ll do what needs to be done.” He paused at the doorway before leaving. “And if you’re a good friend, you’ll make it easy for them.”





	1. Lines are Drawn

**Author's Note:**

> Here comes the bastard man with another 3 part angst fic. I hope you enjoy, your thoughts mean the world to me if you have the time!

It was dark. That was the first thing that Eddie noticed when he woke up. It was dark and he was lying on the floor, which wouldn’t be so alarming if the floor was his own. However, it wasn’t the rough, stained apartment carpet that he had grown to know. It was concrete. And it _hurt_. Bracing his hands against the floor, he pushed himself up, wincing at the throbbing pain he felt in his forehead.

He reached up, and gingerly brushed his fingers against the cut on the left side of his head. There was dried blood all over his face and down his shirt, but the cut wasn’t bleeding anymore.

**I did not – I did not get to it in time, Eddie.** Venom’s voice came from the back of Eddie’s head, but something sounded _different_. The voice was broken, lacking the confidence it usually carried.

“You stopped the bleeding. That’s what’s important,” Eddie murmured. “Are you okay?”

**We are weak, Eddie. We lost a lot of blood. We did not get to the cut in time.**

“You did the best you could, I told you it’s okay.” His eyes were slowly adjusting to the room around them. They were in what could only be described as a glass container. “How in the fuck did we- “

The lights kicked on, leaving Eddie momentarily blinded once more. A tall man, with graying hair and a grim look made his way over to the glass. He stopped a couple of feet away.

“Do you know how you got here?” The man cocked his head, waiting for Eddie’s response. Eddie didn’t give one. His head still hurt. He looked around the container they were in. There was nothing of note. It looked to be made of glass, at least two-inches thick. There were no entrances, no exits. Venom swirled around in their head, alleviating some of the pain that still lingered.  “Does your friend know how you got here?” The man asked. Eddie’s eyes widened.

_Do you?_ Eddie frantically thought.

**There was a fire, Eddie. A fire at home. We tried to get out but it was moving so fast, faster than normal, and -**   Feelings and brief memories skirted along their bond. There was heat and _pain_ , and a frantic dash for a window. There wasn’t much to remember after that.

Eddie looked back up, making eye contact with their captor.

“I’m going to assume you had something to do with the fire?”

“Did your friend tell you that?”

“No idea what you’re talking about.” Eddie raised his hands and let them fall down to his sides again. “I’m kinda the only one in here.”

 “So you were talking to _yourself_ a couple of minutes ago?” The man smirked.

“Yeah, helps me sort out my thoughts. And I’ve got a lot of them, seeing how I woke up in a fucking aquarium.”

**Let’s eat him.** Venom was stirring inside, right at the base of his throat. While the voice was still shaken, they seemed ready enough for a fight.  

_Give me a minute_ , Eddie thought back. _This dude is way too confident._

“Can I talk to your friend?”

**I would very much like to _talk_** , Venom roared inside Eddie’s mind, practically bursting at the seams.

Eddie took a deep breath and closed his eyes. He tried to settle himself before speaking, and in turn, settle Venom.

“Just let us go. You don’t want to do this.”

“Us? ‘Let _us_ go’, Mr. Brock?” The man leaned in, delighted. “Care to explain why you’re talking in the plural?”

Eddie snapped his eyes up, baring his teeth as he took a step back. He rolled his shoulders like he was  shrugging on a jacket and felt Venom envelop them like a wave. They opened their eyes as one.

_He already seems to know who we are. No point in hiding it anymore,_ Eddie thought from within. He sighed. _We’re not gonna get our security deposit back on the apartment. Let’s fuck him up._

Venom was delighted. They unfurled their claws and roared, the sound bouncing of the sides of the glass container and making Eddie wince.

The man didn’t seem to be phased at all.

**You have made a mistake** , Venom grumbled, their voice vibrating all around Eddie. They pointed accusingly at the man in front of them. **You are going to pay for it.**

_Enough with the dramatics_ , _dumbass_ , Eddie snapped. _Let’s finish this._

Venom raised a fist and brought it down on the glass in front of them. The pain they experienced was immediate and overpowering.

Venom shrieked as they curled their burnt hand inwards.

_Venom?_ Eddie frantically called. _What happened? What’s going on?_

He received only feelings of fear and pain in response. Eddie surged to the surface, bringing Venom back inside. He placed his hand protectively over his chest.

“What the fuck did you do?”

“The container that you are in is heated to approximately 4000 degrees Fahrenheit.” He shrugged his shoulders. “I wouldn’t try that again.”

“What do you want?” Eddie growled. He could feel the fear building up within him, and Venom didn’t seem to be doing much better.

“Extreme heat is only one of your friend’s weaknesses, correct? The other being loud sounds, if I’m not mistaken.”

Eddie said nothing, but knew that his silence spoke for him.

“Here’s the issue we run into, Mr. Brock. We want your friend. Specifically, we want your friend without _you_ attached. Quite badly, in fact. And if we wanted to, we could blast this room with sound-waves that would splatter your friend across the walls. But that would injure them, wouldn’t it? And we don’t want that at _all_.”

The man took another step, bringing himself closer to the glass wall that separated them. “Tell me, Mr. Brock. When was the last time your friend ate?”

Not knowing where this line of questioning was going, Eddie allowed himself to think. Before the apartment fire, Venom was rumbling about being hungry. They were cooking together. That’s was one of the last things they can remember doing.  Inside his chest, Eddie could feel Venom go deathly still.

“I imagine your friend is hungry after this whole ordeal, correct?”

“What the fuck do you- ”

“This _thing_ that you have inside you, it’s built to _survive_. Nothing more than that. And when all else fails, we all fall back on what we were built to do.”

The man straightened up, and turned to walk out of the room.

“Tell your friend there’s no food coming. Tell your friend the only food that will be provided is already in the cage with them.”

“You sick _fuck_ , I swear to God, I’ll -”

“If your friend wants to live, they’ll do what needs to be done.” He paused at the doorway before leaving. “And if you’re a good friend, you’ll make it easy for them.” He left, leaving the two alone.

Inside Eddie’s chest, Venom let out a cry.


	2. Promises

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Eddie blinked fast and ducked his head, trying to hide his swelling eyes from the camera.
> 
> “It’s okay. If it keeps you alive, it’s okay. Venom, please. You have my permission, you have my blessing.”

No one else came in to check on them. That was the worst part. If the man had returned to gloat or -  shit! If the man had returned to eat a chicken pot pie in front of them, at least they would have had someone to direct their anger at.

But there was no one. Through the glass, Eddie could see a security camera, trained right on them. But there was no sound except for his breathing, and of his symbiote when they spoke.

And they were speaking less and less as the night wore on.

And even less in the morning.

Eddie guessed it would be about 6 am. Their apartment had blown up around seven in the evening yesterday, and they couldn’t have been unconscious for more than four hours. There were no windows, but judging by just how tired his bones felt, he felt safe in assuming they were nearing the 24-hour mark.

Eddie sat cross-legged in the center of the glass box. He couldn’t risk bumping into the sides off his cage. A burn like that would hurt Venom tremendously, and they needed to save as much energy as they possibly could. He scrubbed his hand along his face. He needed to shave. He needed to sleep, possibly even more than Venom needed to eat.

**I doubt that’s true.**

Eddie smiled.

“How are you holding up, big guy?” His voice was scratchy from the lack of water. His throat hurt, and Venom, although he tried, couldn’t seem to do anything to fix it.

Venom simmered beneath him, bubbling with a rage that Eddie felt too. His head exited Eddie’s chest, suspended by a few short tendrils.

**We are going to eat him.** Venom’s mouth snapped shut on the final syllable. If they had eyebrows, they would have been furrowed.

Eddie pointed up at the security camera.

“Did you hear that? That’s a promise, my man!” He cackled at the lack of response from anyone outside of the room.  He looked back down at the head hanging from his chest. Venom looked – smaller. His head wasn’t as big as it normally was. Worry twisted in Eddie’s gut. Venom had been hungry _before_ this whole ordeal had started. They hadn’t eaten anyone in a couple of days. They had been surviving off fast food and whatever Mrs. Chen had in the freezer section.

Straightening his back until he heard a pop, he tilted his head down. _You don’t have a plan in the works, by any chance?_ Venom twisted around for a couple of moments more, and then disappeared inside Eddie’s chest.

**You should sleep. You need your strength as much as we do.**

_I’m gonna take that as a ‘no’?_

**We _will_ exit this heated cage. We _will_ eat the one who put us here. You need to rest, Eddie. **

Eddie shifted in his position. He was lightheaded from not having anything to drink all day, and he was exhausted. He assumed Venom was feeling just as bad. Maybe that’s why he put into words what had been on his mind all day.

_I don’t want them to take you. If I’m awake I know they won’t try anything._ Venom thrummed under his chest, anxious in a way they couldn’t put into words.

**We will wake you if we notice anything. Sleep, Eddie.** Eddie felt a poke from somewhere in his stomach. **Maybe you will ‘dream up’ a plan for escape.**

Eddie chuckled. _That’s not how any of that works, and you know it._

Venom didn’t reply, although Eddie could feel something curl around his heart. Venom probably needed to rest too. Conserving energy was sounding like a better and better idea. He shuffled sideways so he was laying down, mindful of the walls. The last thing he needed was to roll over and give himself a third-degree burn overnight.

He closed his eyes, and tried to focus on Venom. He tried to send thoughts of reassurance, although he didn’t know how much of that was received. He fell into a light sleep without much of a fight, trying to imagine anything but his empty stomach.

* * *

 

Eddie woke up to the frantic shouting of Venom in his head. At least, he tried to wake up. He was so lightheaded. His head lifted itself off the ground, and fell back with a _thud_. The yelling in Eddie’s head rose to a fever pitch. It had been over 24 hours since Eddie had drunk anything. Maybe 36? He had no idea how long he had been out for.

He peeled his eyes open, just in time to see a tendril smack him across the face. He sputtered, shaking his head and _immediately_ regretting it.

**Eddie. Eddie, wake up.**

He couldn’t talk. His head felt like it was filled with air.

**Eddie, _please_.**

His heart broke at the desperation he heard in that voice.

**Eddie, they brought something in.**

Shakily, Eddie twisted his head to see what Venom was talking about. It was a water bottle, placed near the edge of the box, but definitely inside. A water bottle. No label, nothing descript about it.

“How - ?” His voice barely rose above a whisper.

Venom wrapped a small tendril around the bottle and brought it closer.

**Drink.**

Eddie twisted off the cap, and downed half of it in one go. Almost immediately, he felt his head begin to clear. “Venom, how did this get in here?”

**We don’t know. We – We were hibernating with you and when we awoke it was here.** Venom’s voice was definitely shaking.

“Venom?”

**We couldn’t wake you up, Eddie. Your mind was alive, but your body was _not_ and we could not wake you up. **

Eddie finished off the rest of the bottle. He didn’t know how long he could last without food, but water was key.  That granted him some confidence.

“Venom- ” Eddie sighed and held out his hand. Normally, Venom would separate from their shared body when he did this. It had become their shared code for ‘let me see you’. This time, there was no response.

**We don’t –** Venom stuttered and stopped once more. **We don’t have the energy to come out right now. We are sorry, Eddie.**  

Eddie sat up. “Does water not help you?”

**You are stronger, so we are stronger.**

“That wasn’t my question.”

There was a beat of silence.

**No. We need food.**

“Christ,” Eddie muttered. _They’re bringing us water, Venom. We just have to wait until they do it again. If there’s an entrance, there’s an exit. That’s gonna be our chance._

There was nothing in response.

“Venom?” He spoke aloud, not caring who heard.  Again, no response. He put his hand on his heart, pushing until he felt a faint shove back. “Venom, are you-”

**We are so tired, Eddie. We are so hungry.**

Eddie took a deep breath, trying to quell the panic that was rising.

“Listen. This won’t be the first time you’ve helped yourself to my organs. There’s gotta be something in there you can munch on. An appendix?” He chuckled. “A few bites around the waist line?”

There was silence for a minute, and then Venom spoke again. When they did, they sounded absolutely shattered.

**We won’t hurt you, Eddie. We _promised_.**

Eddie blinked fast and ducked his head, trying to hide his swelling eyes from the camera.

“It’s okay. If it keeps you alive, it’s okay. Venom, please. You have my permission, you have my _blessing_.”

**Eddie, we _promised_.** Their voice was getting harder and harder to hear.

“Love, it’s _okay_ ,” Tears fell from Eddie’s eyes and he curled in on himself. “I’ll be fine, it’s okay.”

**Eddie, we-**

“I need you here more than anything,” Eddie cut in, his voice breaking. “ _Please_.”

All Eddie could feel was a flutter in their chest.

“Venom?”

There was silence.

“Venom,” Eddie tried again, and took in a shuddering breath. “Please.”

The only sound to be heard was of Eddie quietly sobbing.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you guys for all of your support so far! It means the world to me! I'd love to hear what you thought of this chapter!! And I hope you stick around to read the next. <3   
> Thank you again for reading!


	3. Satisfaction

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> When that didn’t work, he begged silently. For Venom to come back, for Venom to say something, to do anything, just prove that they were alive.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Your support has been overwhelming and unbelievable! Thank you so very much. I'm so sorry it took so long to get this chapter up, I pinched a nerve in my arm which took me out of commission for a while. 
> 
> I'd love to hear what you thought of this chapter! Your reviews mean the world to me and I try to respond to them all. 
> 
> As a note, this is where this work earns the E rating. People are going to get hurt and/or devoured.

The water kept coming. Eddie knew that without it, he would have died a few days ago. But every time Eddie passed out from either exhaustion, or hunger, or just pure frustration, there would be a water bottle standing directly under his face when he woke up again. Never once was it poisoned, and never once did Eddie see anyone enter or leave the room.

It had been five days since he – since _they_ were attacked.

It had been over three days since he heard Venom speak at _all_.

He was hungry, sure. It had been _five days_. His stomach was practically concave, and he constantly felt lightheaded, like the room didn’t have enough air in it. But he wasn’t in danger of dying. He knew the human body could survive for much longer with food than it could without water. He had water, so he wasn’t particularly worried about himself.

But Venom –

Venom was different.

Eddie spent most of the days talking to his other. Sometimes he spoke aloud, reminding Venom of the tasty, beneficial protein that lied within his own appendix, or a piece of his liver, or one of his kidneys. ( _I’ve got **two**! You can have one, it’s only fair!_) He talked about his apartment, and how angry he was that it went up in flames, and just how badly they were going to fuck up whoever did this to them.  

But Venom said nothing.

And when Eddie’s voice broke, he kept his inner monologue going. He reminded Venom over and over and _over_ that it was okay, they would be fine as long as they were together. He promised his symbiote a million times that whatever they had to do to survive would be forgiven, and that he was _sorry_ for ever using the word parasite, even as a joke, and won’t you _please_ forgive him and just _take a bite_?

But his thoughts were never returned, and he felt nothing moving within.

So when that didn’t work, he begged silently. For Venom to come back, for Venom to say something, to do _anything_ , just prove that they were alive.

That’s what Eddie was doing now. Time was getting harder and harder to keep track of. If he could guess, he would say that it must be nearing midnight, the end of the fifth day here. His head was feeling heavier and heavier, and he knew that he needed water soon. He knew that he should _try_ to get some rest, in hopes that they would bring him some. But there were more important things to focus on. Kneeling in the center of the superheated glass cage, he placed his hand on the center of his chest and just _begged_.

A week ago, Eddie would have thought himself above such measures. But he was tired, he was so fucking hungry, and he felt so cold without the constant motion of Venom inside him.

_Tell me you’re still here, big guy._ He drew in a ragged breath. _I need something love. Please._ _Because if you’re not still here, there’s no point in –_

There was the _faintest_ push against his hand, coming from within. Eddie snapped open his eyes.

_Thank you. **Thank** you, love. _They were alive. They were still with Eddie, and that meant there was still hope. _I’m gonna get us out of here, Venom. I promise. Just do what you gotta do to hang on, and I’ll –_ He shook his head, trying to focus his thoughts. _I’ll take care of us._

He didn’t know how much of that promise Venom was able to hear, or willing to believe. He had said the same thing yesterday, after Venom was able to signal with a slight nudge to his rib cage that he was still alive. They were still here, and they were growing weaker by the hour.

_I’ve got an idea, love_ , Eddie thought as he gave in, and laid his body down onto the floor. He knew that this was probably their last shot.   _I’m gonna take care of us. I’m going to take care of you._

* * *

 

Eddie was a nail biter. It had always been a nasty habit, one that Anne tried and failed to break him out of. He bit his nails constantly when he was nervous, or had a deadline fast approaching, or for a variety of other reasons.

All that morning, he had bit his nails on his right hand. Every so often he would glance up at the camera and stop, as if ashamed of his nervous tic. But the bare essentials of a plan were forming, and he couldn’t help but feel a bit of hope through the overwhelming despair.

Now that it was night, the bit of hope was steadily blossoming. This could _possibly_ work. He laid on his right side, his hand curled up in his chest. He closed his heavy eyes with a sigh. He was so tired. And so very thirsty. The last bottle of water was delivered a little over a day ago.  He was due for one, and he intended to take advantage of it.

His head swirling, Eddie felt himself start to drift towards unconsciousness. Without moving the rest of his body, he pushed his nails into his right hand. He had bitten them into points, trying to copy the curved talons of Venom. The sharp sting of pain brought him back towards consciousness, although barely.

All night Eddie lay there, digging his pointed nails into his palm, trying not to pass out while at the same time trying not to move any other part of his body. He thought of Venom, small and weak and nestled in the center of Eddie’s chest. Unable to speak, unable to come out. Venom had _always_ protected Eddie, from the dangers of men like Drake or from the various dangers of his job. They took a generous amount of pride in protecting him.  It was time to return the favor. His nails pushed into his hands and he felt the skin break.

But he kept going. They were going to come. They just had to.

Just before what Eddie imagined to be dawn broke, he heard a noise from somewhere outside the cage. It took every _ounce_ of willpower he had to not open their eyes to see what was happening. The noise got closer, until Eddie could perceive it to be soft footsteps. They stopped just shy of the cage’s front wall. Eddie stilled his movements altogether, keeping his breathing deep and his heartrate down.

Eddie heard a soft hiss, and felt a rush of fresh air.

Things moved very quickly after that.

Eddie opened his eyes. There was a square opening on the glass about two feet long on each side. Reaching through it was an arm in the process of placing a water bottle inside. Attached to the arm was the man they had talked to when they first arrived here. And he looked _very_ surprised to see them awake.

Eddie acted on instinct.

He pushed upwards off of the concrete with his hands, ignoring the pins and needles from lying on the ground for too long. He pulled his legs under him, reached forward and grabbed the arm with both hands.

“You _fucker_!” Eddie growled. Bracing his feet and doing his best to fight off the dizziness, he gathered what very little was left of his strength and pulled.

Out of reflex, the man slammed his other hand against the glass to try and stop himself from being pulled in. He screamed, the skin on his hand blackening and filling the room with the scent of burnt flesh.

Eddie might have imagined it, but he could have sworn he felt a faint stirring from Venom at that.

But the tables quickly turned. This was a man who had eaten in the past 24 hours, who hadn’t slept on a concrete floor. He had his strength, and Eddie did not. The man planted his feet and curled his injured hand up. He started to pull back, his hand slipping from Eddie’s grasp.

“When I’m clear,” the man screamed, fire in his eyes, “close the _fucking_ hatch!”

Eddie knew he wouldn’t win this game of tug-of-war. But this was their last chance.

With a yell, Eddie _pushed_ forward. He used the momentum of the man pulling to propel him faster. He jumped at just the last second, flying headfirst out of the cage and on directly on top of the man who brought them there.

Eddie’s fingers flew around the man’s throat, pushing down with a snarl.

“You hurt them. You hurt _us_.”

The man said nothing, but instead pulled back his uninjured hand and slammed his elbow across Eddie’s face. Eddie lost his grip and was knocked to the side.

“You’re more fucking trouble than you’re worth,” the man spat out as he stumbled to his feet. He reached to his side and pulled out a gun. “I’m done waiting for you to die.” He pulled the trigger, and the sound of the shot echoed through the room.

Eddie shut his eyes, bracing for the pain that was sure to come.

None came.

Opening his eyes, he glanced down. Right over where his heart should be was a small, inky black puddle, stopping what would have otherwise been a fatal bullet.

“Venom-?” Eddie gasped. The puddle disappeared.

But then the faintest of voices spoke in Eddie’s mind.

**We are so _hungry_ , Eddie.**

Eddie felt the mask of Venom slide slowly over his face. His vision was clouded as he looked through Venom’s milky white eyes. He felt Venom’s sharp teeth click into place, and long tongue darted out. Nothing else manifested of Venom, but that was okay.

That was all they needed.

Eddie ran forward, tackling the man once more. They had been frozen with fear, and for good reason. Venom opened their mouth as wide as they could, drool pooling and falling onto the man below.

“You can’t-”

He never finished the rest of his sentence. Venom’s jaws snapped shut, taking the majority of their head in one bite. The result was almost instantaneous. Eddie felt Venom surge through their body, lighting up every corner that had been dark without them. If Eddie wasn’t busy being part of an active murder, he would have wept with relief. The rest of Venom took form, and Eddie was grateful for that. Not that he wasn’t excited to be eating. He couldn’t even _pretend_ to be grossed out. With every bite Venom took he could feel them both grow stronger, and he could feel Venom come back to _life_. Within a minute, the man was gone.

Venom retreated back inside abruptly, startling Eddie.

“You might want to stay out for a bit,” he chuckled. “There’s got to be more of them coming.”

**We are still hungry. This is a good thing.**

“Yeah it is,” Eddie laughed. He felt a prickling sensation in his palm. He turned his hand over to see Venom slowly healing the cuts he had dug into his palms. He felt a wave of displeasure from his other half.

**This is a _bad_ thing. **

“I had to stay awake!” Eddie protested. He cocked his head, a thought just occurring to him. He walked over to the water bottle which had been flung to the side in the fight. He screwed off the tap and finished it in one pass. “It was the only way I could think of.”

**Think harder next time.**

“It’s just a scratch! Look, it’s already gone.”

**Don’t do that again. It was unnecessary.**

Eddie sighed, dropping his hands to his sides. “You were _starving_ yourself to avoid _hurting_ me. Don’t talk to me about _unnecessary_.”

**We needed to protect you, Eddie.**

“And I needed to protect _us_!” Eddie yelled, his fists curling. His voice softened as he felt his symbiote swirl anxiously inside. “There is _nothing_ I wouldn’t do to protect _us_. You know that, right?”

A swirling mass of his symbiote curled around his hand, forcing his fist apart. They pressed between his fingers until Eddie felt like he was holding Venom’s hand. “You are mine, Venom.” A swirl of pleasure erupted from his symbiote at his words.

**You are _mine_ , Eddie.**

Before Eddie could speak anymore, the sound of footsteps outside broke their focus.

“You said you were still hungry, yeah?”

Venom engulfed them both, roaring their answer and shaking the room. They crashed through the door and confronted their meal, their toothy grin never fading.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you once more for all your support!!  
> I'd love to hear any and all thoughts you might have. Thank you so much for reading.

**Author's Note:**

> I'm so thankful that you read this, any thoughts you might have about it are appreciated so, so dearly. I love this movie so much and I love you for reading this!!
> 
> If you're interested I have written another 3-part angst Venom fic called To Implode. It's finished, so you can read the whole thing in one go!
> 
> Find me on tumblr at spockazilla.tumblr.com


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